Gordon Brown has announced that Basra, the last Iraqi province under British control, will be handed back within two weeks during a surprise pre-Christmas visit to the troops.

The Prime Minister was speaking after a telephone conversation with Nouri Maliki, the Iraqi Prime Minister, shortly after arriving in Basra airbase where 4,500 British troops are stationed. It was his second visit to the country as Prime Minister.

Addressing 300 troops, Mr Brown said: “I have just spoken to Prime Minister Maliki. He told me to pass on his thanks for what you have done. He is now recommending that we pass control to the Iraqis within two weeks so Iraq can take far more responsibility for its security.”

He called the invasion of Iraq and its aftermath a “great venture” but stressed that there had been problems.

Iraq timeline: five years of conflict

From accusations that the weapons of mass destruction dossier had been sexed-up to withdrawal of British troops from Basra

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• Britain and Basra

Mr Brown, who arrived at the base aboard an RAF Hercules in pitch darkness, admitted that while not every difficulty had been overcome, great progress had been made. Government officials said that there had been a 90 per cent drop in violence in Basra since September, when troops withdrew from Basra Palace to the airport. However, MPs on the Commons Defence Select Committee have attributed this to the influence of Iranian-backed Shia militias and criminal gangs. Praising the troops, Mr Brown quoted Winston Churchill saying: “Courage is the most important quality of all, because if you don’t have courage nothing works.”

His speech came days after the kidnappers of five Britons taken hostage in Iraq seven months ago released a video showing one of them, identified as ‘Jason’, flanked by masked gunmen.

The kidnappers threatened to kill the man in days if Britain did not withdraw its troops from Iraq. Mr Brown said: “The taking of hostages is completely unjustified and wholly unacceptable and they will not change our policy in any way.”

With troop levels dropping to 2,500 in the spring, British forces will move to an “overwatch” role, concentrating on training Iraqi troops and occasional military support. Further decisions will be taken after March, although the MoD said that there was “no guarantee” that troops will be there beyond the end of next year.

Yesterday it emerged that questions remain over the effect of British withdrawal on American supply lines up to Baghdad, with senior British officials conceding that the matter of how they had to be protected is still to be settled.

The local police have already indicated that they might find it difficult to cope. Major General Jalil Khalaf, Commander of the Basra police division, said: “I am faced with a lot of hardships.

“Frankly speaking, we have rifles, machine guns and a few armoured vehicles which are not as advanced as the British weaponry and are insufficient to maintain full control.”

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